As a daughter of a beta, Everyone knows me and treats me with utmost respect along with my two other siblings. Logan and Leila are two years older than me and they are twins. As their little sister, they are protective of me and wants what is best for me

Among the three of us, the pack favors me the most. They even like me more than they like the next alpha in line which is my best friend, Adam.

Adam Marden is the only son of the Alpha and Luna of Red Moon Pack. He has the same age as my siblings and they are also classmates. Logan and him are inseparable. Although it's expected for a Beta and an Alpha to have an inseparable bond, people can't still deny that Adam and I share a much deeper bond.

Adam has always been there for me when I needed someone. I could tell him my problems that I can't share with my family and he knows how to make me happy. He even spends most of his time with me than Logan. I also know him more than anyone. I know his dark secrets and how he wants to have a sibling to take care of too.

Everyone in the pack including our parents wish that me and Adam would end up mates. Everyone thinks that I fit the role as their Luna and they believe that I was meant to rule.

I'm smart, kind, and beautiful. I possess all the characteristics of a Luna, but I'm not sure what Adam feels for me, and what I truly feel about him.

I'm still young and I'm barely old enough to think about love and mates, but everytime I see him and everytime I hear the people talking about how perfect we are for each other, it makes me think if there's something deeper going on between us.

Adam is perfect. Every girl wants to have him as their mate. He's smart, strong, and athletic. Even at a young age, you can already see that there is a bright future ahead of him other than being an alpha. He's raised perfectly by his parents and treats everyone as his equal. If it wasn't for how powerful he is you won't even know that he's the future alpha of the number one pack in the world.

The Red Moon Pack is known for its power and wealth. No one messes with us even the rogues. Our pack consists of the best werewolves. We have the best military and a powerful leader which is as powerful as the Lycan.

The Lycans are the Leaders of Werewolves. They are in charge of maintaining peace between packs, monitoring rogue attacks, and seeing that the Alpha and Luna are following the Law and ruling their pack in the right way. Most Alphas are Lycans by blood like Adam and his family.

"Mira! Hurry up, we must not keep the Alpha and Luna waiting." My mom called downstairs while I fixed my clothes back into my closet.

"Coming!" I shouted and hurried downstairs.

We went inside the car and dad drove towards where Adam lives. Just like any normal human we also make use of technology to our advantage. Our pack is also covered with CCTV cameras that watch our every move even though we don't need it because our pack is guarded by our elite warriors and no one dares to disobey the Alpha.

The Alpha and the Luna invited us to dinner and it would be rude to say no even if we don't plan to say no either

When we arrived Alpha Damien was already outside waiting to welcome us with his son. The smell of the flowers that Luna Heidi had well taken care of, wafted into the air making us feel more welcome.

My father held the alpha's hand and bumped his shoulder with his arm.

Adam just stood there like us and watched the adults talk with each other like friends who hadn't see each other for a long time.

"Alana, you've grown big." Alpha Damien said, referring to her baby bump which had grown into a size of a ball over a few weeks.

Werewolves give birth earlier than humans. It also depends on how powerful the baby and its parents are.

"Where's Heidi?" Mom asked instead and ignored the Alpha's remark.

"She's waiting inside," he answered and led us inside their house.

Their house is big but simple. It's surrounded by a garden of different flowers.

When you go inside, you'll see a great painting of Luna Heidi carrying Adam who was just a baby with Alpha Damien beside her, on top of the fireplace.

We've been inside their house many times already. This wasn't the first time we were invited for dinner and sometimes we even do slumber parties in their house, just the four of us.

"Damien close the door." Luna Heidi commanded while pinching the bridge of her nose.

"I'm sorry." Alpha Damien apologized and immediately did what she said.

I sniffed the air and the only scent that I could smell is the flowers which is weird because she loves the smell of flowers.

"What's the special news?" Dad asked as we sat by the table. We usually hold formal dinners when we have a special announcement to make.

"Why don't you guess it." Luna Heidi told him.

"Did we form an alliance to a neighboring pack?" Dad asked.

"No." Luna Heidi shook her head.

Dad was silent for a moment, thinking about what the special announcement might be, "Did the Lycans award us for something again?"

"Sebastian!" Mom shouted frustratingly, "She's obviously pregnant like me!"

Heidi can't stop the smile that appeared on her face when mom successfully guessed what the important announcement was.

"You're having a baby!" Dad exclaimed.

"Congratulations!" Mom stood up from her seat and hugged Luna Heidi.

"I can't believe it when she told me that she was pregnant. I guess we had to change the family painting we have by the fireplace," Alpha Damien said.

"There's no way I would go through that excruciating pain again Damien." Luna is very irritable today since she's pregnant.

Pregnant she wolves are not to be messed with except if you want to end your life.

My parents laughed at what she said and I nearly laughed too. Luna Heidi would always tell us the story of how they had that painting wherein she had to smile and sit up straight for hours while carrying Adam.

"If you want a picture of us by the fireplace then you hire a photographer not a painter or I'll snap his neck," she threatened with her canines out.

"Calm down!" Alpha Damien said and caressed her back until her canines retreated.

Our parents laughed and talked while eating. You can never tell that they were the same person who rarely smiled outside and barked orders to people. While us kids were silent the whole time until we all felt full and we can't take to eat some more.

"Mom, Dad, can you please excuse me and Mira," Adam asked his parents politely, and I looked at him confused.

Adam held me by the hand and dragged me to their small gazebo in the middle of the garden away from our family.

"What's wrong?" I asked him.

I could tell that he was nervous. He wasn't looking straight at me and he's moving his feet too frequently.

"Whatever I would tell you, promised me that nothing would change between us."

I looked at him weirdly. He had told me everything weird about him before but it didn't change anything between us, "You know that you can tell me everything, right?"

"Yes, but this is different," he said softly between his breaths.

I didn't respond and waited for him to tell me what he wanted to say.

"I love you," he paused, "More than friends. It has nothing to do with what other people tells us. I've loved you the day I laid my eyes on you."

I stared at him with my eyes wide open. I was speechless. I just stood there like a statue not knowing what to say or do.

"It's okay if you don't feel the same way. I just want you to know what I feel."

"What if we weren't mates?" I asked.

"I love you so much that I'm willing to risk it, Mira. If by chance we didn't end up as mates and you decided to leave for your other half," he gulped as if he can't accept what he just said, "I will let you go, because all I want is for you to be happy."

"I-I don't know." I lied.

The thing is I knew what I felt and I've been denying it for so long. I know that Adam is more than just a friend for me, and that I feel the same thing he feels for me.

I should have said that I love him. I love him too much that when I found out he wasn't my mate, I wouldn't care because he's all that matters to me. I should have hugged him like my life depends on him while I can still hold him.

If I only knew that things would change that fast.

"Mira!" Leila called me.

"I'm coming!" I shouted back but Adam grabbed my arm.

"Wait!" He said, so I waited.

He brought out a pure silver necklace from his pockets and handed it to me. It has an infinity pendant with words, "No Matter What," engraved across it.

Werewolves aren't affected by silvers. It was a myth. Only vampires are affected by silver. Our only weakness is wolfsbane.

"It doesn't matter if we weren't mates. It doesn't matter if the world tells us no. No matter what, I will choose to love you," he whispered and my heart melted with his words.

That night, both of us lied. I lied about my feelings and he lied about his promises.

　　My class just ended and I had to wait for an hour for my sibling's class to end. While waiting I decided to go to the forest near the school where people are not allowed to go.

　　Our land is huge. We have our own school, mall, training ground, parks, and other important facilities. Still, I chose to explore the Forbidden Forest.

　　Our pack is heavily guarded by our highly trained Elite Warriors hiding in plain sight.

　　Every werewolf knows that and no one dares to pass by our borders unless they wanted to die. Rogues who are caught passing by were always taken into the dungeons and get interrogated. We don't punish them to confess but we use our power to force their wolves to tell us the truth.

　　If we found out that they're sane enough to become a part of our pack, we would welcome them and let them join us as an omega. They can still work their way up in our pack and prove themselves to us.

　　Omegas are the weakest in a pack but they are not necessarily weak. They are in charge of doing small tasks and although they are weak they are still treated fairly.

　　Before, the dungeon was used to torture different kinds of beings, but now it's mostly empty because of the reputation we have. Everyone fears us, not because we are ruthless but because we are fearless.

　　I trudged deep into the forest, marking every tree I passed by with an infinity symbol, just like the pendant on the necklace that Adam gave me, so that I would know my way back to the pack. I didn't think of the warriors who might see me breaking the pack's rules. I was just curious and besides, I would go back immediately when I'm satisfied with my adventure.

　　Dried leaves scrunched beneath my feet as I went deeper. In just a few moments I heard the sound of rushing water and the sound of birds. I sniffed the air and smelt flowers like the ones in Adam's garden.

　　I ran excitedly to where the scent was coming from and parted every leaf blocking my view and gasped at the beauty in front of me. I saw a small brook and a treehouse covered with vines. The place was surrounded with large rocks and flowers are scattered across the meadow. Birds are circling the sky and butterflies were resting on every leaf. It's like I entered a different world.

　　I wonder why this place was forbidden.

　　I ran and played by myself on the clean grass and the shallow brook while carefully lifting my skirt to avoid getting wet. I also climbed the tree using the broken ladder and the vines to reach the treehouse.

　　I don't know how old it was but it's strong enough to hold my weight.

　　The wood creaked beneath my feet as I explored its insides. It was surprisingly empty and it's all covered with dust. I guess no one knew about this place. It was abandoned and forgotten by time.

　　I cleaned the whole treehouse and searched for things that need fixing but all in all the treehouse is still in good condition.

　　Since then, I always went to that place when I needed an escape and it became my best friend. I even named it haven because it made me feel secure. I know it's weird to call a place your best friend and even name it, but that's the only thing that made me feel family since the incident.

　　I was 30 minutes late when I came back to school. Logan was so angry at me for not waiting for them inside the campus.

　　"We were worried sick Mira. We nearly called our parents because of you," he scolded me.

　　"I'm sorry. I lost track of time."

　　"Where were you?" Leila asked.

　　I couldn't tell them the truth because they will surely tell dad that I broke a rule, "I was just exploring around the pack," I replied, "I promise, I won't do it again just don't tell our parents about this."

　　"Fine, but if you'd do it again I will not hesitate to tell mom and dad," Logan told me calmly and I smiled.

　　Adam was also with them but he's surprisingly quiet. He was looking at me oddly and didn't ask me anything. There's no trace of worry in his face and I couldn't tell what he's feeling right now.

　　We all walked home since the school isn't that far from our house. When I and Adam got the chance to be alone, he suddenly spoke, "You're wearing the necklace," he smiled widely.

　　I touched the necklace on my neck and felt the depth and edge of every letter carved in it, "Yeah," I answered and avoided his gaze.

　　"I'm glad that you liked it," he whispered. I smiled and tucked my hair behind my ears.

　　When we got home Leila immediately told my parents that I left the campus without telling them. Mom was so angry because of what I did and I was surprised when Leila told them.

　　"Calm down, Alana. The pack is heavily guarded and she knows what she's doing. Besides, I already taught her how to protect herself."

　　I'm very much close to my father since I was little and it's because he homeschooled me in my early years.

　　He taught me how to read, write and how to fight. He taught me everything there is in this world and how to live in it.

　　I never understood why he home-schooled me when he could just bring me to school and let the teachers teach me what I needed to learn like what he did to my siblings. Nevertheless, I will never replace the moments I had with my father during those days.

　　It's what kept me living and fighting after all the things I've gone through.

　　One of the best memories I had with him was when we play my favorite game called hide and seek. I clearly remember that day as if it just happened yesterday.

　　I was hiding in the closet with my mouth covered to stifle my giggles. I watched my dad searching for me around the room, through a small hole.

　　"Mira?" He called out while searching

　　"I gotcha!" My father exclaimed and peeked under the bed but it was empty.

　　I nearly laughed aloud when he realized that I wasn't there. It's a good thing that I covered my mouth with my hands.

　　With his supernatural speed, he sped off towards where I'm hiding and opened the door of the closet, "BOO!" He scared me, and I shouted in surprise.

　　He was too fast that I didn't saw him move. I was caught off guard by what he did. He then picked me up and carried me like a sack of potatoes and brought me to the living room.

　　"Dad put me down!" I laughed as I beat his back and he placed me on the floor.

　　Before I could crawl away from him, he grabbed my leg and tickled me everywhere, "Daddy! Stop!" I shrieked, but he didn't listen.

　　"You thought I'd never know that you were there?" He asked and laughed along with me.

　　I never won this game but I love it because I wanted to win. I wanted to beat my dad.

　　After we got tired, we rested our backs on the floor and breathed heavily, "Dad how did you know that I was in the closet?" I asked after regaining my energy.

　　"Simple, I heard you breathe," he answered.

　　"That's impossible, I was covering my mouth the whole time," I retorted

　　"Sweetie, your dad is a powerful werewolf," he complimented himself, again.

　　I know how powerful my dad is. Everyone is afraid of him. He looks scary when he's outside.

　　"Not as powerful as the alpha," I grinned.

　　"Still, I'm powerful," he said with a hint of mischief in his voice

　　"I know," I giggled, "Do you have any other reasons on how you knew that I was in the closet?"

　　"I caught your scent." I raised my eyebrows at his answer.

　　"What can I do to hide my scent?" I asked again.

　　"Hiding your scent is difficult, only special wolves can do that," he answered.

　　"Can you do that?"

　　"Of course, all you need to do is to focus and concentrate on your scent. You can also change your scent or just hide it completely."

　　That was one of the abilities that I could do that he taught me. I thought it was normal and that everyone can do it. I did it perfectly on my first try like I was meant to do it, and I was. I just never thought it would be for those painful circumstances.

　　He wasn't too surprised when I did it, but for me, it was a great achievement and I was so excited to use it against him. However, dad was so good that he always find out where I was even though I'm using that to my advantage.

　　"Dad, when can I meet my wolf and shift?" Werewolves shift anytime. It isn't true that they only shift at the age of 18. It depends on your rank and power.

　　"The earlier you shift the more powerful you are and the more dangerous it would be. Most werewolves shift at their teens or worst at their twenties."

　　"How could it be dangerous? Isn't it a good thing to be powerful?"

　　"Powerful beings were hunted and killed in the past until now. It's because they don't want to be ruled by them. That is why powerful werewolves hide their identities and pretend to be weak," he paused, "When you found out how powerful you are and you turned out to be like them, don't you ever tell anybody about it."

　　"Even you?" I asked.

　　"I will never betray you, sweetheart."

　　When I knew the answer, he's already gone. I know he knew it. I wish he told me sooner.

　　I wiped the sweat trickling down my forehead and smiled at the sight before me.

　　The treehouse is now cleaned and furnished but it wasn't done yet. In the middle, I put out a purple rug so I can sit and lay down on the floor since I can't secretly bring a bed or a chair.

　　Beside it is a stack of books, toys and other things that I love which I brought from my room. I also took pillows and blankets that I could hide in my bag and laid them out on the rug. Last but not the least, I also took a few extra clothes so I won't worry about getting dirty and I would be able to swim at the brook anytime I want.

　　It took me two weeks to bring all these things here because I couldn't fit everything in my bag and I could only sneak here after classes.

　　I opened my bag and brought out the last things that I wanted to bring which were snacks. I mostly brought chips and biscuits which I bought using the money I earned in two weeks.

　　I never told anyone about this secret place, not even Adam. I was afraid that he would forbid me to go here if I told him. I can't also trust Logan and especially Leila because she betrayed my trust last time.

　　I also never forgot to hide my scent so that the Elite Warriors won't smell that I'm here and no one can trace where I've been.

　　I looked at my watch and saw that it's only been 10 minutes since I came here. I had always kept track of time everytime I would go here. I can't risk being late because Logan would surely ask me questions and I might accidentally tell him about this place.

　　I seldomly spend my time inside the treehouse because I love reading while laying down the grass beside the brook.

　　I inhaled the fresh air and the fragrance of flowers and shifted through pages of what I'm reading. I could also hear the birds humming and the water whispering beside me. I was there, drowned in my world. This is the most wonderful experience I ever had in my life.

　　A branch snapped from the forest and I instantly stood up and looked where the sound came from.

　　I sniffed the air trying to search for a familiar scent but instead I smelled something disgusting like a wet street dog.

　　I thought Logan, Leila, or Adam had found me but instead, a rogue had.

　　My heart sped up and cold sweat flowed down my spine. My father used to tell me stories about them. He said they were once normal werewolves who rebelled against their pack and lost their minds and humans in the process.

　　They were greedy and selfish that's why they became rogues.

　　"I am the daughter of Beta Sebastian Savera, of The Red Moon Pack. So run if you don't wish to die." I shouted with a defiant voice.

　　"I don't wish to harm you Beta. I was just passing by," the voice replied and he went out and revealed himself to me.

　　I was expecting to see someone scary that nearly looked like a zombie but instead, the man who came out looked more like a beggar. He has holes in his clothes and his body is covered in dirt, "Please spare me, I'm not like the other rogues. I left my pack because they were mistreating me," he said with his face on the ground.

　　"Show me your face," I commanded him and he immediately obeyed.

　　There were a lot of bruises and even dry blood all across his face and body and I can't help but have mercy on him.

　　How could a pack mistreat one of its members when they are all connected despite of anything bad he could possibly do.

　　"What have you done to your pack to deserve this?" I asked him. Surely, they won't beat him for no reason.

　　"I was born out of wedlock. My mom was impregnated by a man who already has a mate. She beat me because of her anger towards my father," He lowered his gaze sadly and I immediately regretted asking him why.

　　His stomach growled and he lowered his head in embarrassment, "When was the last time you ate?" I asked.

　　"I hadn't had a proper meal for two days since I left. I only survived by picking fruits from the trees."

　　I guess that explains why his wounds aren't healing fast, "What's your name?"

　　"Coby, ma'am."

　　"Okay Coby, I would bring you to our pack to answer some questions, and if you pass you can join us."

　　"I-I thought your pack hates rogues."

　　"We do hate rogues but we don't hate those who need our help."

　　He bowed again with his face touching the ground, "Thank you ma'am for sparing my life and giving me mercy. I promise I would repay your kindness."

　　"You don't have to. We had always helped rogues like you. Some of our members were rogues whom we had taken in. By the way stop calling me ma'am and just call me Mira since you are older than me."

　　We walked through the forest towards our pack. I'm excited to introduce Coby to my dad. I'm sure he will take pity on him because of his situation.

　　I didn't bother going to school and tell my siblings about Coby. I just went straight to the pack's office where dad works.

　　Before I could even reach his office the pack warriors had already sensed his presence. A great howl echoed throughout our borders and it was accompanied by the others. In just a few seconds, Coby and I were already surrounded by them.

　　They were all in their human form since they are strong whether in their wolf form or not. It's also because Coby doesn't possess much of a threat.

　　"Get away from our beta!" The one in the middle commanded and Coby cowered away from me. His body was bent over because of the heaviness of his command.

　　I'm actually not their Beta but they call me one since I'm their beta's daughter.

　　"He's with me. I found him near our border." I defended him.

　　"And what are you doing near the borders?" Someone shouted.

　　It was my father and he's making his way towards me. The warriors bowed their heads at him when they saw him coming.

　　He's frowning and clearly angry at me, "Didn't we told you before to never leave school without your siblings!"

　　I remained silent and lowered my head guiltily. Maybe, I should just have left that place when I saw it. I shouldn't have gone there and broke his orders multiple times.

　　"Bring the rogue to the dungeons," dad ordered and they followed him obediently.

　　"Dad, he's harmless. I was hoping if you'll accept him into the pack."

　　"You know the protocols. He had to do the interrogation."

　　"Dad," I paused, "I'm sorry for breaking your trust. I promise I won't leave the school again," I muttered

　　It's hard for me to leave the place I fell in love with but it's wrong to break his orders and disrespect the alpha.

　　He was about to say something when the sound of a siren interrupted our conversation.

　　"One," dad whispered.

　　"Two," he whispered again after it went off twice.

　　"Run to the bunkers!" Dad shouted and transformed into his midnight black wolf when the siren went off thrice which means someone is attacking our pack.

　　I did what he told me and ran with the crowd.

　　Our pack has its own secret and highly secured bunker for emergency purposes. All of the men, women, and children who don't know how to fight ran towards it while our pack warriors transformed into their wolves and formed their formation around our borders.

　　It was so sudden that the people were caught off guard. Everyone was pushing, shouting, and running towards the bunker and even caused a stampede.

　　And then, as soft as the sound of the wind, I heard it. It was thousands of paws running across the forest and it's coming towards us. It was a rogue attack and at that moment I knew that Coby betrayed me.

　　"Mira!" Coby called my name. The warriors who were supposed to bring him to the dungeons are now gone and had probably went off for the war.

　　"You signalled them did you? You told them that they are free to go and they can attack our pack," I yelled at him.

　　I should have known better. I was too naive that I trusted him and even led him towards our pack. He is exactly the rogue that dad warned me about.

　　"Never! I told you that I wasn't with them. I'm not like the other rogues."

　　I searched his face trying to look for any hint of lies but he's dead serious.

　　The rogues had now entered our borders. Their ferocious growl echoed and the war had now begun.

　　I never saw such horrifying wolves in my entire life. Their wolf is huge and they were standing with their hind legs. Patches of fur had fallen out of their scarred bodies. They are too thin that you can see their bones popping out. They look like they weren't fed for months and would die of hunger any minute. Despite of their thin bodies, they were still strong and could fight our warriors equally. Their strength is three times more than an average werewolf.

　　There are still a lot of people running towards the bunker and instead of hiding to be safe, I helped the people go in.

　　"Hurry up! They are inside the territory!" I yelled.

　　The rogues are attacking the weakest first instead of attacking the warriors and those who can fight.

　　The other warriors were forced to leave their formation to defend the pack members and because of that the warriors weren't able to use strategy to defeat them.

　　The war didn't just brought destruction to the pack, it also brought destruction to me. My world turned upside down and I lost everything.